While it's true that the extreme difficulty of FromSoftware's offerings is the part most gamers remember most about them, they're also consistently loose from a narrative perspective, and this includes Demon's Souls. These games primarily focus on their gameplay and leave their stories in tiny bits scattered throughout the world for players to discover, mostly in the form of item descriptions and environmental details. Even when the games actually play cutscenes to establish events in the world, they're still often ambiguous and interpretational in nature. Because of this, some players might have felt lost upon completing Demon's Souls on their new PS5 consoles, so here is a breakdown of the game's ending.

Demon's Souls takes place in a medieval fantasy continent called Boletaria, and it has been consumed by a colorless fog. This fog is created by a being known as the Old One, an omnipotent creature that sends Demons to gather souls so it can quench its insatiable appetite. After the catastrophe decimated half of the world, a few humans were able to lull the Old One back to slumber and the fog faded for a time. The Soul arts, the power used by mankind that ultimately caused the awakening of the Old One in the first place, were banned in hopes that the Old One could never be awakened again.

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Many years later, King Allant the 12th grew weary in his old age and sought out the Soul arts despite them being forbidden. Eventually, he discovered Demon's Souls' Nexus, in which he was able to learn this power for himself. The kingdom once again entered a golden age with these Soul arts in hand, but the King's lust for power only continued. He returned to the Nexus and eventually awoke the Old One once more, ushering in yet another scourge. The kingdom was ravaged again, and warriors from all around the world learned of the power these demon's souls possessed, but none who were brave enough to enter the fog returned.

What Demon's Souls' Ending Choice Is

Demons Souls Evil Ending

By the end of Demon's Souls, the player's unique character has defeated the five archdemons and can lull the Old One back to sleep and end the second scourge. When walking into the Old One's branches, players will find a mutant blob that was once King Allant. He tells the player that the Old One is a blessing that will end the suffering and pain of humanity, and he questions what the protagonist will decide to do. The Maiden in Black then lulls the Old One back to sleep and ends the second scourge, as well as the spread of the fog. This is commonly known as Demon's Souls' good ending.

However, Demon's Souls has two endings depending on what the player chooses to do in this sequence. Players can leave the Maiden in Black to lull the Old One to sleep, or they can kill her and take King Allant's place as a demon. In this evil ending, the world becomes engulfed in the fog, but the player lives on as a powerful demon.

In the benevolent ending, the player becomes a legendary hero with extreme power and saves the world from the Old One before the cycle continues yet again. This seems like a much better choice, but like most of FromSoftware's games it also is marred by obscurity. The Old One is merely sleeping, and it only makes sense that in the future there will be another corrupt individual seeking power who will awaken the Old One once again and create a third scourge. Demon's Souls is a story about mankind's tendency to repeat their mistakes and the inevitability of death, which is a fittingly somber message to match its nauseating difficulty.

Next: How Demon's Souls Is Different From Dark Souls